A Game of Waking Fires!
by LockeBlaze
Summary: A simple retelling of Fire Emblem: Awakening, featuring a SI as Robin. Gamer, eventual OP and archers! (thanks to WolfBirdNerd for suggesting to put in the summary that it is a gamer.)


**Huh... This feels Familiar. Hey, guys, Locke here! Time to give you a taste of what I can do with a 'Gamer' Fanfic. I will aim to do... a chapter per chapter. I hope you all enjoy and review when finished with this chapter!**

A soft breeze and a… not so soft whinnying were the first indicators that something was wrong. Why? Well, alongside the fact that I had pretty much always lived firmly in civilisation - away from anything that could even resemble a horse, and slept in a bedroom that I will admit never saw the light of day, two very blue and very generic text boxes appeared on my closed eyelids (Think something along the lines of a basic RPG maker game) The first one read:

_Sleeping on a rough surface has restored 25% HP and 25% MP_

As soon as I acknowledged its existence, the message disappeared, letting me see the text box layered beneath it.

_Due to unforeseen events, all Stat Points have been banked!_

Again, I had barely any time to read it before it disappeared. At least this one let me think about it… Unforeseen events? Stat Points? None of this made any sense…

With those two text boxes gone, I was left in total darkness, lost with my own thoughts. Ugh, it's better not to think of that. To hold off the darkness, I decided to slowly crack my eyes open - stopping myself as another whinny hit my ears. I had expected the horse to still be present - they don't just disappear. But, with the way it sounded, almost like the horse was impatient, I decided that the horse wanted something from me. With a groan, I opened my eyes and pushed myself to a sitting position - struggling more than I thought I would - I soon saw my alarm clock, and was stunned into silence.

What I thought to be a horse… wasn't a horse. Well, if we're talking about a large creature with a mane, a tail made of hair and walks on four legs, then… yes. It was a horse. However, unlike most types of horse - granted, my knowledge on horses was… less than stellar, but I doubt there are any horses out there that are pure white - practically emitting light. Adding to its strangeness, there were two very large appendages attached to its side, under one on its right side was a brown bag. Those limbs must have been wings… no doubt about it. That means… This wasn't a horse. It was Pegasus! The untameable stallion, the offspring of poseidon and the Gorgon medusa! The very same pegasus! I could barely contain my excitement. One night, I was wasting my life playing Grand Theft Auto, and the _next morning_ I am greeted by a living myth! Soon, the excitement overtook me and I rotated backwards - falling back onto my back. Asleep.

_Critical Awakening Scene, all notifications delayed_

"Chrom, we have to do something!" A voice called out, waking me from my slumber. A female voice, definitely, and… familiar. Definitely a voice I've heard before but nowhere I could place.

"What do you propose we do?" A second voice. Male, presumably… Chrom - if the first voice was to be trusted. Wait… Chrom? He's a game character, right? From… Fire Emblem. Awakening… I couldn't believe it, and I put in an effort to open my eyes again, squinting from the light of the sun.

"I-I don't know!" The first voice… The female. Lissa? It had to have been Lissa, Chrom's delicate little sister. They now finally realise my attempt to open my eyes and move in. To the left, is the male. A messy mop of blue hair took him to his shoulders. Only one of which was even covered (despite the cape that was running down his back), and covered with a silver pauldron. The other was bare, revealing his masses of arm muscle and a tattoo on his right bicep. Except… no, it wasn't a tattoo, was it? It was the brand of the exalted - the crest of house Ylisse. This was Chrom as I remembered his ingame portrait.

The girl on the left, however, Lissa… was almost completely different. Of course, the young princess was still a head shorter than Chrom was, with yellow pigtails that barely reached her own shoulders, but that's where the similarities ended. Where Lissa normally had on a dress, its bottom being supported by a metal frame, these clothes were more akin to robes - like a nun's habit, only the same yellow as her old dress would've been. Strange that her clothes were different, but I'm not a man to judge. Maybe being in that dress all the time was uncomfortable.

When the two saw my eyes open, they moved in closer - smiles on both of their faces.

"Hey, you're finally awake." Chrom said, acknowledging my conscience. Thanks Chrom, I had no clue. He stretched out his hand, as if I'm to take it. Which i did - reaching out a… remarkably dainty hand to the swordsman, the back of it marked with a familiar six-eyed marking. The mark of Grima. Of the Grimleal. As he hoisted me up, he said his most famous line.

"There's better places to take a nap than the ground, you know." He was joking, obviously. Even in the game, it came off as nothing more than a joke. I simply wasn't prepared for it and I stumbled through many different syllables to try and find something I liked.

"Yeah…" My voice shocked me. It was higher pitched and softer than it really should've been. Included with the nervous giggle that I performed, I must've looked like a total embarrassment to the entirety of the male race. Fortunately, my performance didn't seem to affect Chrom's opinion of me, as he chuckled and released my hand - forcing me to stand on wobbly legs alone. What was happening to me? Why did my entire body just feel… off?

"You all right?" The prince asked, seemingly worried for my well-being. Even if not worried for me personally, he was still a prince and had duties to his people.

"Y-yes…" My voice still sounded off, and it didn't seem likely to want to change. "Thankyou, Chrom." Any good villager would know of the name of his liege, after all. Any good amnesiac, too, apparently.

"Ah, so you know who I am?" Do I…? Do I dare to break the timeline? No… let's just play it safe, follow the script. Be the amnesiac.

"No, actually, it… it's strange. Your name, it just… kind of came to me." Now, I am forever doomed to be the amnesiac. Unless I choose to actually come clean about my past… Not yet. Not the time to think about that.

"Curious… Tell me, what is your name? What brings you here?" A chance to change my story? No… I couldn't just tell him everything. It would be too much for him to handle. That, and I'd likely have to come up with a new name. I mean, Locke? That doesn't sound Ylissean or Plegian. No, I had to come up with another name.

"My name… It's…" I stalled, desperately trying to figure out a name to give myself. Fortunately, the impatient prince unknowingly came to my rescue.

"...You don't know your own name?" Oh, Chrom, I love you so much right now. I just had to play along. Act the fool.

"I don't know it… I'm sorry, Chrom, but where am I?" This was when Lissa piped in, playing the armchair doctor. Except she actually is a doctor…

"Oh, I've heard of this! It's called amnesia!" I'll be honest, if it wasn't for the fact that she said that, I would've assumed that the healer had tuned out completely. Sadly, as she hadn't tuned out, the fourth one obviously hadn't tuned out. Built like a truck, yet coated in only light chain mail with… the strangest pauldrons I've ever seen. Behind him, what I would assume to be his faithful mount. A… Wyvern? Yeah, it didn't have forelegs, it was definitely a Wyvern.

"It's called a load of old Pegasus Dung. We're to believe you remember milord's name, but not your own?" Damn, this guy's voice was scary. It was deep and commanded respect. It would've made me lose my nerve, if it wasn't for the fact that I literally needed to keep it or else be cast out by the one group that may be able to help…

"I-It's the truth!" In a desperate attempt to defend myself, probably just made me look like a massive fool. I can only hope Chrom understands…

"Aye, and what if it is true, Frederick, we can't just leave her here, alone and confused." Yeah, I can't be left here alone and confused! Wait… did Chrom say? He called me a 'her'. That would explain so much, even if I didn't want it to. I was a man! And I would stay a man until I had the chance to actually check. It… simply wouldn't be proper to do so in public. "What sort of shepherds would we be, then?" Oh, yeah. The Shepherds. A great name for a group. I mean, really, a flock of people tended to by shepherds. Perfect for this world's SAS.

"Just the same, milord, I must emphasise caution. 'Twould not do to let a wolf into our flock." When I played awakening, I didn't really mind Frederick as a character. Now, though? He was beyond annoying. If it wasn't for the fact that I knew I would be floored immediately, I would've tried taking the flier on.

"Fine, then. We'll take her back to town and sort her out from there." Thankyou, Chrom, you're really the Anti-Frederick MVP. I nodded and followed Chrom and Lissa - both of whom had received horses. I didn't get a horse, though, so the fighters were forced to stay with me - Frederick in the air and Chrom/Lissa infront/behind me respectively. Out of direct conversation, at least for the time being, another string of text boxes appeared before me.

_Break in Cutscene, alerts enabled!_

_Sleeping on a rough surface has restored 25%HP and 25%MP_

_Through displaying basic knowledge of Greek Mythology, you have gained a new skill: ancient knowledge_

Skills, hp, mp, stat points, Chrom, Lissa, Frederick… If I didn't know any better, I'd say that I'm actually in the world of Fire Emblem. As a user… That would mean I had a character sheet and inventory, right?

"Character info." I muttered, obviously audible enough for Lissa to look down to me on her horse, clear confusion showing on her face. Not that I would be able to converse with her, however, as my character sheet soon showed up in a blue text box.

_Name: Locke_

_Sex: Female_

_Race: Human_

_Class: Peg. Knight (dismounted)_

_Title: Stranger_

_Level: 0_

_Exp: 0_

_Exp to next level: 100_

_HP: 100/200 (Base 200*Endurance + Endurance*level/2)_

_MP: 100/200(Base 200*Intelligence + Intelligence*level/2)_

_Carry Weight: 0/110(Base 100*Strength + 10*Endurance)_

_Strength: 1_

_Perception: 1_

_Endurance: 1_

_Charisma: 1_

_Intelligence: 1_

_Agility: 1_

_Luck: 1_

_Stat Points Available: 35_

_Weapon Ranks_

_Sword: E_

_Spear: D_

_Axe: E_

_Bow: D_

_Anima: E_

_Dark: E_

_Staff: E_

_Skills_

_Earthly Knowledge:_

_Ancient Knowledge: 1_

Wow, that was a lot to take in. Still, those weapon ranks… Bows and Spears would be my best weapons, then? That… Made sense, actually. Whilst at college I had dabbled in archery at their small archery club, and whilst working in the garden whether with a rake or a broom, I would pretend that it was a staff. I guess a spear would be the closest similarity. Either that, or it was my class as a pegasus knight simply granting me D rank. Yeah… I was a pegasus knight and, given that this was Awakening, also female. That confirmed Chrom's words. I was a female. The worst possible gender for Robin…

"Inventory." I muttered again. This time, Lissa seemed to ignore me and the Character sheet was replaced by another blue text box. To the right, there was a figure - a girl, the same age as me - Dark brown hair flowed down to her body, which was dressed in a black hoodie and matching tracksuit bottoms. Just like what I was wearing… That was… Me. I'm sure it was. Under my 'model', there were two labeled numbers

_Attack: 1_

_Defense: 0_

Mediocrity given form... On the left hand side of the text box was a list of equipment.

_Head: nothing_

_Torso: Outrealmer's hood(0 Def)_

_Legs: Outrealmer's pants(0 Def)_

_Shoes: Outrealmer's boots (0 Def)_

_Primary Hand: Nothing_

_Off Hand: Nothing_

I was officially an Outrealmer, then? That made sense. I wasn't from Ylisse… That was actually it for my Character Sheet and Inventory. When the Inventory menu closed, I sniffed the air. There was smoke… I needed to initiate this next conversation with Chrom, now.

"Sir Chrom, may I ask of my fate after you have assessed me?" I could've worded that better, but at least Chrom got the point of it.

"If you're worried of being held prisoner, then don't be. Once we've established that you're of no threat to Ylisse, you'll be free to go."

"Ylisse? So that's where we are." Having somehow heard our conversation from above in the air, Frederick swooped down to chip in with a scoff.

"You've never heard of the Halidom? Ha! Someone pay this actress, she plays quite the fool! The furrowed brow is especially convincing…" I clenched my right fist as I resisted the urge to punch the dragon rider, but Chrom interjected before I could say, or do, anything rash.

"Frederick, please." He glared at the dragon rider, then turned back to me. "This land is known as the Halidom of Ylisse. Our ruler, Emmeryn, is called the exalt." I nodded, taking in this information. Emmeryn was the queen of Ylisse, except the queen was called the exalt here. "Now, I believe introductions are in order. I am Chrom, but you already knew that. The delicate troubadour here is my little sister, Lissa." Chrom chuckled as Lissa huffed.

"I am not delicate! Ignore my brother, please. He can be a bit thick sometimes. Still, you're lucky that we found you! Brigands would've been a rude awakening!" A moment of silence passed and, to fill it, I decided to pretend that some part of my memory had been restored.

"Locke… My name is Locke." I trailed on each use of my own name. It… didn't really sound right, but it was my name.

"Locke? Is that foreign? Never mind that, we will discuss it later. We're almost to town, once we-" Frederick cut Chrom off, swooping down on the wyvern.

"Milord Chrom! The town…" I didn't need a status report to know what's going on - the huge pillars of smoke told it all.

"Damn it! The town is ablaze! Those damned brigands, no doubt. Shepherds, move out!" Holding up his blade, the legendary sword Falchion, Chrom signalled Frederick and Lissa to move forwards - the two cavalier units charging off without me. No quip about me being on fire, nothing. Just Chrom and the gang charging off - leaving me stunned and alone. I doubt that without a weapon, I could be of any use anyway.

Wait… I could be of use! I was a pegasus knight, surely I would be able to survey from above and play the part of the Tacticitian. Oh, delightfully devilish, Locke! All I had to do was summon down the pegasus.

"Pegasus!" I called out, my voice cracking as I pushed air out from my lungs. Soon, what was once a small shadow - indistinguishable from a bird, started to grow as Pegasus flew down. Heavens above, it was a glorious sight. The magnificent horse's wings blocking out the sun as it gently dropped to the ground. Although the creature didn't approach me, I cautiously approached it - my arm outstretched like I would for a dog. It didn't seem to take offence to that, staying still until I ultimately reached its side - my hand soon finding itself stroking its muzzle. With the pegasus distracted, I raised my left leg to mount it. A leg that came nowhere near high enough to get myself into a position to mount the flying horse, but it did remind me of the one thing that marred his radiant hide. My foot hit the bag strapped to his right side. It felt firm, there was something inside of it for sure. Seeing as this was my pegasus and, by extension, my bag I opened up the brown leather material, being greeted by the most beautiful sights in the world. A bow and quiver, the latter filled with 50 arrows. I didn't know what type of bow it was, but with one hard look at it, I earned a text box.

_Through studying your surroundings, you have learned the Observe Active skill_

_Cost: 10MP_

That was useless. I didn't know if I needed my MP in a hurry whilst in the fight with Chrom, so I didn't use Observe. With my Bow in hand, and my quiver strapped to my left hip, I started running. Running straight into my first time on a battlefield.

The raid on Southtown was worse than I could have ever imagined it to be. Yes, in the game, there was shown to be fire, but it was only really the town hall - there were no visual effects on the map. This, however? I was forced to pull the hood on my hoodie up and tighten the chording within - covering my nose and mouth. There was no way that I would let myself breathe in the CO2 from the raging inferno. As I ran, the inferno only seemed to grow as I ran through it - my ears peeled for the sound of clashing steel, only getting the roaring crackle of a bonfire instead. Soon, I was pushed off of my feet and a searing pain shot across my back.

Rolling onto my back, it soon became apparent what had hit me. Dressed in… Frankly, the worst clothes for this situation - what looked like nothing more than a transparent silk to cover the body and a primitive skull headdress to cover the head, was a man - his right arm outstretched with a swirling ball of green energy atop of it. A magician, one practicing wind magic. The one who was actively fanning the fires.

To prevent the mage's spell to grow even stronger, I pushed myself to my feet - grabbing my bow in my left hand on my way up. I slowly backed off as I pulled an arrow from my quiver and nocked an arrow. The Arrow in place, I stood still and drew my arm back in a maneuver that I had practiced many times. I closed my left eye and took aim, dragging the bowstring back until…

_Thwip!_ I let the arrow fly loose, the wooden object shaking in the air as it flew. And flew. Right over the head of the mage - embedding itself with a thunk into the wood. My attack having missed, I was left vulnerable to the mage's next wind spell - one which drew fire into the swirling vortex - becoming a fire spell that I barely dodged. With 49 arrows left, I realised my fatal mistake. I had backed myself into a corner, with a bow. I cursed and pulled an arrow out of the quiver - holding it in my right hand like a thief would a dagger. Taking a deep breath in, I charged the mage - aiming to shove the arrow straight through his heart. An attack that must've been so telegraphed, the mage reacted with negative speed - dodging my pitiful attempt at an attack with ease and smacking my right arm - throwing the arrow to the ground from the pain. Now I was really left with no choice. I swung my left arm up, hoping to punch the mage in the face with an reinforced bow jab. I will never know if I would've come out on top from the duel, as a spearhead shoved its way through the magician's head - effectively killing it within moments. Soon enough, the owner of said spearhead would make his way to me - grabbing the shaft of the spear and making it finish its path through the mage's body. A grisly sight, to be sure. Almost enough to put me off.

"Are you alright, Locke?" Indeed, the one who saved me was a shepherd, one atop a white stallion. Chrom had just come to my rescue.

"I… I believe so. Thankyou, Chrom." Boy, did this sound familiar. To quickly change the subject, I spoke about the battle at hand. "How is the village doing?" As I asked it, Chrom's expression turned grim. Not a good sign, obviously.

"Frederick says that there are now two more combatants to face off against. I trust that you are combat capable, now?" At least he was concerned for me. It must've been the smoke getting to him. I nodded, gesturing to my bow and quiver.

"I'm not that good a shot, but I'll do my best." It annoyed me to no end that I missed such an easy shot, but I wasn't going to let Chrom go ahead alone.

"Fine then. We'll regroup with Lissa and Frederick by the bridge - meet the brigands for one final push." Chrom commanded, turning his horse around. Of course, I wouldn't be allowed to mount the royal steed so I followed on foot - my bow held firmly in my left hand, even if Chrom had told me that the rest of the enemy were by the bridge.

And by the bridge they were. Chrom had told me that the bridge was safe, but our arrival was marked by the ear piercing shriek of what I assumed to be Frederick's wyvern. Both Chrom and I nodded at eachother, picking up the pace to meet with the grounded Wyvern Lord, he and his dragon effectively holding the bridge. It's a shame that it was Frederick, it could've been some good experience for Lissa and Chrom… I shook my head as I drew an arrow and ran to the side of the bridge. There were two enemies - a lean swordsman, most likely one of the Myrmidon class, if I had to guess. The other enemy seemed as broad as a house, wielding an axe of equivalent size - the brigand boss, if I had to make an assumption.

"Frederick, get off the bridge! Let Chrom take your place!" I shouted as I nocked the arrow. Of course, the drake and its rider didn't move. Fine, then, hoard the experience. I pulled the bowstring back and let it fly - right into the swordsman's shoulder.

_+20 EXP!_

Seeing the myrmidon's weakened state, Frederick grinned and jabbed at him with his lance. The arrow shaft stuck in his shoulder slowed his mobility - giving the lance free reign to impale the myrm. It spluttered once, twice, and went limp. Dead within a day, if not already.

This left only the Brigand and even if Frederick notoriously beat the weapon triangle in awakening, I wasn't going to let him hoard the boss experience.

"Frederick, weapon triangle! Get back and let Chrom face off against him!" I called out, putting on my best 'experienced tactician' voice. One which involved lowering my voice and, whilst it was probably effective when not in Ylisse, it definitely wasn't effective here - making me feel like I was being foolish. Fortunately, Frederick seemed to get the message and drew his Wyvern up and away, allowing Chrom to take the position at the bridge - Falchion drawn.

It was a tough battle, clearly. A one on one duel between the mounted swordsman and the mountain of a Brigand. There was no point in even taking a potshot - the huge masses of muscle would've likely dwindled my own damage to pretty much nothing. Chrom, however, could do damage - if it wasn't for the fact that the Brigand overpowered his every attack. There had to be something I could do…

That something would never come to me and I was forced to watch as the brigand tired, slowly retreating before falling onto his rear. That was it. The battle for South Town was won with minimal damage. The town was in flames, of course, but for the shepherds? It was a miraculous event - even if I didn't do much of anything to help. With a smile, I spoke up - time to follow the script again…

"Well, that's the end of that." The end of a battle I had little active part in.

"I'll say! It's lucky for the town we were close by!" Lissa said from behind me, starting to look across me for any wounds. Clearly, there must have been some kind of mark left from the spell fired at me as she pulled the back of my hoodie up and used… presumably a heal staff, as a very strange warmth washed over my body. The jumper soon came back down and Lissa moved to the side of me, so that the conversation could continue again.

"I'm impressed. I'd taken you to be helpless, but… you've skill with a bow and, seemingly, have a basic battle education. You're no helpless victim, that much is for sure." Chrom said, practically skipping out Lissa's other small part in this conversation. Still… I wasn't a 'Helpless victim'? I was saved by the cavalier twice, today. That factoid begs to differ.

"Indeed. Perhaps you can conjure up an explanation, now, of how you came here?" Frederick… If I knew that, wouldn't I have told you? Well… obviously not, but it made sense. He didn't have the title of 'The Wary' for nothing.

"I… Understand your scepticism, Frederick, but I cannot explain how I know of the weapon triangle - or of my 'skill' with a bow. I promise you, I have shared all that I know." Spoken, genuinely, from the heart. Nice one.

"You fought to save Ylissean lives, Locke. My heart tells me that's enough."

"And your mind, milord? Will you not heed its counsel, as well?" Frederick, we really don't need you chipping in. I would much rather just accept Chrom's trust.

"Frederick, the Shepherds need a good tactician. We've brigands and unruly neighbours, all looking to bloody our soil. Would you really have us lose such potential? Besides, as odd as her story may be, I believe her."

"Thanks, Chrom…" I mutter, my tongue not staying in place as much as I wanted it to. Hearing these words - I mean, genuinely hearing these words was the confidence boost I needed. Sure, I may be weak - without much ability to fight, but… I apparently had skill as a tactician. I couldn't let him down.

"So, Locke, what do you say? Will you join us?" The offer I didn't know I was waiting for. I grew giddy upon hearing it. Not good for my cover, but… maybe I could pass it off as vague rumour and posters. At least for now.

"I would be happy to." And, so… I was accepted into the shepherds. Their tactician, for now. But… Who knows just what the future brings?


End file.
